Believing in Steven
by Evaworld
Summary: A collection of short stories about the many adventures of Steven and the Crystal Gems and the good, the bad, and the memorable moments that will forever be in their hearts. (Updates every couple of weeks, rated T to be safe. I do not own Steven Universe)


** A/N: Well, this was unexpected; I would have never guessed that this particular show would take over my life. Anyway, this is my first time writing for this lovely fandom (not my first fan fiction, of course). I haven't written fan fiction in a while and I decided this will be that time. I'm letting you know right now that this is just a bunch of random drabbles and quick writing practices for when I have a writer's block on my novels, so I will let you that know that I will most likely ****not**** continue any of these that you see here. Most of the drabbles will be mellow, cute fluff and interactions between the characters, some will contain action. **

** ~~ On a last note, please know when these drabbles were published. I'll keep a date if necessary, but as the show goes on, more information about the characters and their situations will be released and some of these writings will possibly be invalid, characters will seem out of character, and "non canon", made up situations will possibly occur. The series still has a lot of questions to answer at this moment in time; it is still a new television show. I'll try to keep these as canon as possible, but if an episode shows otherwise, then so be it…~~**

** *Spoiler alert for anyone who hasn't seen "So Many Birthdays" or "Arcade Mania" yet* **

**1 (Band-Aids)**

It has been one of the longest days in his entire life. To be honest, it didn't really feel like it was just one whole day, it felt like three. Today was fun, of course not counting the exhausting emotional afternoon but it has been a rather eventful day. It was a long day filled with birthday celebrations that weren't quite the best. After the whole incident, Steven noticed that the gems wouldn't let him out of their sight for more than a minute. That means if they were in the living room, he had to be there too, no exceptions and no "buts". They even let him tag along in today's world-saving adventure, even though it was a light and quick mission in the first place. Of course this wasn't the first time that something happened to Steven which caused the gems to stick with him in their concern; it happened a lot more than necessary. Whenever he got injured during a mission, whether it was just a cut or bruise, the gems grew cautious of him and kept on eye on him for obvious reasons before they grew their confidence back and things returned to normal. However, this time it may be different. He almost died today. It wasn't just a scratch inflicted by a crystal monster this time, he almost died. He remembered their expressions as if it happened just a few minutes ago. Pearl was crying uncontrollably and almost lost all of her focus in the situation, something that she tries and succeeds to prevent. Amethyst was enraged out of frustration and frantically trying everything to help him but with a painful expression on her normally cheerful and laughing face. He could hardly see Garnet but for the few seconds he saw her, she was trying to calm herself and the rest of the gems. Nothing really ever crossed his mind today but he hopes that he'll never have to see that again…

The Crystal Gems were more than just mentors, teachers, or guardians to him. They were his family and his friends. He knew he could always count on them and they were all very close. Steven loves and cares about them with all of his heart and they feel the same, even if he messed up on some missions and wasn't the brightest or the strongest gem (yet), they never raised their voice or gave up on him. And that's something that he appreciates. That's why he couldn't handle this afternoon. His friends didn't know what to do and normally it is the opposite, and the expressions on each of their faces (especially Pearl's), broke him.

On the bright side, since Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl never let him out of their sight, he got to show them what slumber parties were as it grew later. The nights were very mellow in Beach City; there was not a job in sight for a Crystal Gem once the moon was out and the lights dimmed low. Humans were all asleep anyway, so, after all of them were in the living room, relaxing, he showed them what a slumber party was. Sleep wasn't necessary for a Crystal Gem and he knew that, so he just showed them the games people play during sleepovers, so that he could let them get the full understanding of what people do on when they are on a slumber party. Pearl was a bit skeptical at first, thinking that this was going to be a lot like the birthday parties but she gave it a shot nervously, only because Amethyst and Garnet were convinced. They all changed into pajamas by his orders (that was when Steven asked Garnet why they even have them, and she shrugged and just replied with "They're comfortable," and he couldn't argue with that) Steven first showed them truth or dare, which, as you could imagine that didn't end well at all with Amethyst being the in mix. It was too much power for her to handle and it got…out of hand real quick. He showed them some more games but after a ton of candy and junk food, Steven died down a bit and they just did something calm, like watching television together. He didn't really remember what happened next but all he knew was that he was leaning against Garnet and shut his eyes for more than a minute before accidently falling asleep. Normally, they would've carried him to his room and tucked him in. Tonight goes to the exception; they all joined him, even when he didn't know why they would want to. Well, it was a slumber party after all, right?

He woke up in the middle of the night (or at this moment, you could say very early morning), with Pearl who was angrily whispering at an unconscious, loudly-snoring Amethyst who kept sleeping and drooling right on top of her during the night. He understood that she was trying to be quiet, but it was hard to be when Amethyst's limb and unconscious body was crushing her. "Oh, for the fourth time, Amethyst. Would you just move?" She whispered loudly, if it was possible to have a loud whisper anyway. Amethyst just obnoxiously snored in response and Pearl sighed in defeat, only whispering, "This was a bad idea," before attempting to fall asleep for more than her fifth time tonight. At the moment, he wondered where Garnet was, and if she was asleep. Garnet never sleeps, and he noticed that, either that or he was never really able to tell because her eyes and her expressions were always covered in her mirror-like sunglasses. He was way too tired to move his head to check if she was there, and if she was awake, and maybe he would have cared more if he wasn't so drowsy. So he shut his eyes again and let the thoughts leave his mind.

Just about when he fell into unconsciousness, he felt some arms quickly and tightly grab hold of him. He jumped, and turned his head to see Garnet, who was in a cold sweat and was holding on to him like her life depended on it. Steven was taken aback, he had never seen her asleep but yet alone like this. She grasped the fabric of his shirt tightly, and her expression was easily read as some form of stress. That was when his foggy and dense mind finally adjusted to the situation: She was having a nightmare. He felt the strength in her arms, and he said her name as loud as he could (without waking up Pearl, who seemed to finally be peacefully asleep, despite Amethyst still being a bother) in an attempt to wake Garnet up. It only took a few tries, due to her calm and high-perspective demeanor. Her eyes opened, and she released her grip and backed up a few inches "Steven," Garnet expressed calmly, and then instinctively covered her third eye with her palm. At the moment, he wondered why she even took off her glasses, she was rarely seen without them, and she was very self-conscious about her third eye, but then again, if she had them on, he wouldn't be able to tell if she was asleep or not. Garnet slightly calmed herself "I'm sorry." She continued in her smooth voice

"No, no, don't be…Garnet," Steven stopped himself before going on, "Are you okay?"

"Yes, Steven," She whispered back, although he just thought that she was back to her same old, 'made of stone' self, and he worried about her. Does she act strong to hide the things from her nightmares?

"Are you sure?" He mumbled to confirm. Steven got no response from Garnet this time, and her expression was hidden. Ugh, he knew something was biting at her right now, and if she didn't always act so strong, she would tell him for sure. He wanted to know, so he hatched an idea and got up off of the couch. "Where are you going?"

"I'll be right back. Don't worry," Steven muttered in an encouraging, yet quiet tone and went into the dining room to retrieve something in a familiar medicine cabinet. This would make Garnet tell him what was wrong for sure, he knew it. His fingers grasped the old dusty box of old Hello Kitty Band-Aids that probably hasn't even been touched in three years and went back down into the living room, quiet enough to not wake up the two gems who were still, surprisingly unconscious, he could tell by Amethyst's loud snores and Pearl's quiet ones. Garnet was a bit confused (she easier to read when those sunglasses weren't on her face) when he came back down, and he consoled, "Where does it hurt this time, Garnet?" as he took out one of the Band-Aid's in the original package. He noticed that she softened up, and looked at the boy, showing one of her rare and almost alien smiles.

This brought back so many memories to the gem leader. She remembered when Rose left. She was upset for days on end and furious even, until Steven filled that gap, and in fact, he filled it in the matter of a week. The small boy crammed that emptiness that Garnet had in Rose's absence and she learned to grin every once and a while. The thought that she almost lost him today was unbearable, she made a promise to Rose and she planned to keep it until the little boy was no longer little and could take care of himself.

She remembered a few years back, she went home on an individual mission, with cuts and bruises shown everywhere on her, and some scratches cut through her clothes and her skin. It was bound to happen. She was a Crystal Gem, a protector of Earth. When you are a Crystal Gem, it meant that some days, you will have scars and your battle wounds, and others you wouldn't even look like you fought a giant terrifying monster. That was when a younger Steven started to worry about her. He asked her if it hurt and she just said no, although the child wasn't convinced. All she could remember after that was that the next time she went home with her battle wounds all over her skin, Steven took out a childish looking package of "Band-Aids", the Hello Kitty version. Garnet was confused yet curious, and when she learned they were used as a type of First Aid, she told Steven it wasn't necessary, but the boy refused, and placed the Band-Aids all along the cuts that were visible on her legs, mainly because that was all he could reach at his small age and height. With his instruction, she sat down and allowed him to place the bandages all along her face and her arms wherever it was needed. Due to her very docile nature towards the one's she cares about, she never found it to be bothering. She found it to be an adorable trait, and it soon became a habit.

Every time she arrived home, she had to give Steven a souvenir from the palace or temple she visited (even if it was just a rock, he was satisfied), and then if she was 'wounded', Steven had to get out those Hello Kitty Band-Aids again and he would ask, "Where does it hurt this time?" She wouldn't reply, of course, because the scars didn't hurt as bad as you would think, but she would smile as her form of reply.

As the years went by, he eventually stopped doing that altogether, and Garnet didn't quite know why, maybe it was because she stopped getting hurt as much as she did and grew even more excellent in combat than a few years before. Either way, she'll always remember those Band-Aids, no matter what happens. And she was just reminded of them currently.

She lifted him up, and held him close in her arms, and he giggled quietly enough not to disturb anyone. "Do you feel better, Garnet? Did they work?" Steven questioned for the final time that night.

"Yes, Steven. They worked."


End file.
